Leon (Final Fantasy II)
Leon, or Leonhart, is one of the playable characters in Final Fantasy II. He is an ally but he also serves as the secondary antagonist throughout the game as the Emperor's Dark Knight. Profile Appearance Leon is a young man with tanned skin, purple eyes, and spiked dark purple hair that is swept back. In his normal appearance, he carries a curved sword and wears dark purple armor trimmed with bronze with spiked pauldrons and bronze knee pads. He also wears leather boots and has a large red jewel on his belt. As the Emperor's Dark Knight, he wears an ornate set of black armor trimmed with gold, a helmet with curved gold horns, and a red cape. Leon's NES sprite is a modification of the Warrior sprite from the original Final Fantasy, colored blue and bronze instead and having a slightly different blue hairstyle, while his field sprite shows him with blue armor and red hair. Personality Leon's personality before becoming the Dark Knight is unknown, but he seems to have cared for his sister Maria deeply. As the Dark Knight, he is power-hungry and authoritative, often rude and harsh to Firion and his party. His dreams end up being dashed and he comes to regret his decisions, hoping that someday he will be forgiven. In Bafsk, the citizens under his control appear mute and afterwards can't remember what it was like when he was in control, so he may have used dark powers like mind control. Story '' version.]] Leon, Guy, Maria, and Firion were among the people forced to flee Fynn when it fell. During their escape, Maria ended up in danger of being killed by Imperial Soldiers when she tripped, causing Leon to come to Maria's defense by using swordplay to hold the soldiers off while Firion got her to safety. He later reconvened with the group, ultimately watching Fynn from afar as it burned with the others. Leon is separated from his allies, including his sister Maria, during an attack by Palamecian Knights. He becomes the Emperor's Dark Knight, and fights against his former allies. It is never stated why Leon joins forces with the empire and the Emperor. He was once the leader of the building of Dreadnought but was later replaced by Borghen, forced to work behind the scenes to put on the finishing touches. When Firion and his party go to Bafsk to stop the construction of the Dreadnought, Leon informs them they are too late and the Dreadnought is complete, also making clear that the claim that he left for Palamecia and had Borghen do the finishing touches was in fact disinformation. When Firion and the others drop the Sunfire in the engine, Leon comes to see what happened to the engine and Maria recognizes his voice. He later appears to capture Firion and the others who try to rescue Hilda. After the Emperor is slain aboard the Cyclone, Leon attempts to crown himself Emperor, but is forced to flee with Firion and Maria after the Emperor returns from the dead in demonic form. Leon joins forces with Firion, Maria, and Guy to defeat the Emperor at the Pandaemonium. After the Dark Emperor's death, Leon states that "too much has gone on between us" (referring to Firion's party). He implies he and Firion will meet again one day and leaves. Firion comments that when he is ready to return, Leon will be welcomed with open arms. Gameplay Since Leon is removed from the party following the initial battle, it is impossible to see his equipped armor or stats other than his starting 30 HP and 5 MP. He wields a Broadsword and a Buckler; they can be unequipped from him in the remake versions, and they will not be lost after the battle. Leon's stats are higher than most of the characters when the player regains him, unless the player has done a lot of grinding. Leon starts off with no spells and very little MP, but has high Intelligence so he can be effective with Black Magic. His Stamina and Magic are high so his HP and MP will grow quickly. He has high Strength and is proficient to some degree with all weapon types. His initial equipment is a Flame Sword and a Poison Axe as weapons, and a set of diamond equipment for armor. Leon's ultimate weapon in the Arcane Labyrinth is the Longinus, making spears the weapon to focus him in if the player wishes to use it well. Initial stats ;Stats ;Proficiencies Optimal Key Terms for Arcane Labyrinth Creation and development Voice Leon's vocal sounds in the FMV opening were provided by Takayuki Yamaguchi, who would later voice Brother, Clasko, Keepa, and Wantz in Final Fantasy X and Final Fantasy X-2. Other appearances Leon has made appearances in the following games in the ''Final Fantasy'' series: *''Pictlogica Final Fantasy'' as a playable character. *''Final Fantasy Airborne Brigade'' as a summonable Legend. *''Dissidia Final Fantasy Opera Omnia'' as a playable character. *''Theatrhythm Final Fantasy All-Star Carnival'' as a playable character. *''Final Fantasy Record Keeper'' as a playable character. *''Final Fantasy Brave Exvius'' as a summonable vision. *''Final Fantasy Trading Card Game'' as a series of cards. *''Triple Triad'' as a card. Gallery Amano Leon.jpg|Leon, Maria and Guy concept art by Yoshitaka Amano. FFII - Heroes - Leon Detail.png|Detail of Leon from Yoshitaka Amano's Final Fantasy II protagonists' art. Leon-cgi.png|Leon's CG render from the opening FMV of Final Fantasy II from Final Fantasy Origins. Leon DoS 2.png|Alternate artwork of Leon for Dawn of Souls. FFII Leonhart by Toshitaka Matsuda.png|Artwork by Toshitaka Matsuda. Leon Dark Knight NES.png|Leon as a Dark Knight (Famicom). Leon Dark Knight PS Map.png|Leon as a Dark Knight (PS/GBA). Leon Dark Knight PSP Map.png|Leon as a Dark Knight (PSP/iPod). Leon Dark Knight GBA Portrait.png|Leon's portrait as a Dark Knight (GBA) DKLeon-PSPPortrait.png|Leon's portrait as a Dark Knight (PSP/iPod). FF2PSP Leon Frog.png|Leon's portrait as a frog (PSP) FFI Novelisation Amano Illustration 5.jpg|Leon illustration from Final Fantasy II Muma no Meikyū by Yoshitaka Amano. Etymology Trivia *Leon is the first Dark Knight in the series, although it would take until Final Fantasy IV for the signature abilities and fighting style of Dark Knights to be introduced. *Leon is the first character in the series to serve as both a party member and an antagonist during the course of his game's story. *Leon is the first antagonist in the series that is related to a playable character. *Leon's Japanese name, Leonhart, is also the last name of Squall, the main character from Final Fantasy VIII. In the Kingdom Hearts series, Squall changed his name to Leon after failing to save Hollow Bastion from the Heartless. *In Final Fantasy IV, the King of Fabul gives Cecil Harvey the Deathbringer and says a Dark Knight left it there years ago. In the Final Fantasy IV Settei Shiryou Hen guide, the name of this Dark Knight was Leonheart. The guide mentions he lived approximately 100 years before the events of the game, and was said to have renounced the Dark Sword to become a priest, somewhat echoing Cecil's journey to become a Paladin a century later. His sword remained a centerpiece in the Temple of Fabul until it was given to Cecil by the king.http://www.sceneryrecalled.com/trans/ff4comp.htm *Leon's design by Yoshitaka Amano influenced Caius's design from Final Fantasy XIII-2. *Leon is nineteen years old in the Final Fantasy II Muma no Meikyū novelization. *Although Leon doesn't appear in Dissidia Final Fantasy, he as well as his brainwashing by the Palamecian Empire, are referred to when fighting the Emperor as Cecil, where the Emperor says "Ought you not be on our side?" References de:Leon es:Leon (Final Fantasy II) fr:Léon pt-br:Leon (Final Fantasy II) Category:Characters in Final Fantasy II Category:Dark Knights Category:Antagonists